Dallas: Stronger together

“I never go looking for a fight, but when one finds me, I sure as hello finish it. And they are in for the fight of their lives.”

Bobby is in his office trying to get some work done before Annie’s sentencing hearing. He yells at JR to stop IM’ing him from his room. Hee! JR responds by telling him again some more to check his email. He’s trying to cheer Bobby up. Bobby gives in and what he finds does indeed make him smile. “It’s a dog playing basketball. Doesn’t that beat all!” Double hee! I’ve read that Show is planning a proper send off for Larry Hagman (RIP, *tear*) but I would also be content for JR to live on as a virtual character, unseen but for a constant stream of chat messages and videos that were funny six months ago but that are new to him.

Sue Ellen has grown weary of waiting for Elena to show a return on her investment. John Ross suggests that if his mother wants what is hers, she take it. He reveals Drew’s arrest for transporting stolen goods. By invoking the morals clause, she can take over the Henderson wells and all of Elena’s assets – including her shares of Ewing Energies. A lightbulb goes off over Sue Ellen’s head. John Ross milkshakes that this isn’t a manipulation. He wants his mother by his side as a partner. “We’ve got a bird’s nest on the ground, mother. Let’s pick it up. Together.”

Christopher and Pambecca sit down to negotiate the final terms of their divorce. She gets 10% of Ewing Energies, Christopher gets joint custody of the twins, and Elena gets her church wedding. That little slice of the company is practically burning a hole in John Ross’s pocket. Pambecca is all, yeah … about that. She’s keeping her shares for the children. And for a soupcon of Cliff’s love and approval, but mostly it’s for the kids. Won’t he think of the children?! She doesn’t want to be at war with their father again. John Ross calls shenanigans. “Just the thought of you making him suffer is how you get out of bed every morning.” He reminds her that he defied JR to save her from a murder rap. Pambecca tries to reason that he won’t need her shares once Sue Ellen makes her move. He’ll still have her as an ally on the board and it won’t cost him the methane patent. John Ross doesn’t quite see the math adding up. “I should have let JR take you down when I had the chance. You want to play dirty? Game on.”

Bobby speaks for Annie at the hearing. He tells the jury about their courtship – conducted mostly on horseback – and her work with battered women. He calls her the most caring, compassionate person he knows. He asks the jury to look beyond the facts of the case, “to the larger truth that Grandpa Zombie had it coming of what happened, and do the just thing again.” Court recesses for the day, and Bobby goes to visit Emma at the stables. He reminds her that she has another family at Southfork. If she ever needs anything, they’re there. She smiles and tells him she won’t be needing them, but her tone has lost all of the edge it once had. She’s almost apologetic. She nervously tucks a stray lock of hair behind her ear and Bobby chuckles. That thing she did with her hair that every woman on the planet with longish hair does, it’s just like her mother. Emma has a conflicted.

Christopher confronts Drew about his arrest and blah blah his father’s land he was set up blah. Why, whoever would do such a thing?! And for what reason?! It’s alright boys, just keep banging those rocks together. Eventually you’ll get a spark. Christopher reviews the partnership agreement and finds the morals clause. He immediately calls Elena and tells her not to let Drew plead guilty to the charges … just as the ink is drying on his plea deal.

Emma visits Annie in jail before day two of the hearing. Annie is thrilled to see her. She was worried when Emma wasn’t in court the day before. Emma says she was busy … but she’s here today to show her support. She quickly adds “for my father”, as though he might have super special zombie hearing and catch her breaking rank. Annie tells her she’s a good daughter. And that she knows that worried, fearful look on Emma’s face. She relates a story about the time she got highlights. About how she panicked on the way home. What if Grandpa didn’t like it, or was angry with her for not consulting him first? She was so afraid of upsetting him, that she dyed her hair back before he got home. But he knew anyway, and was furious. Emma hangs on her every word, nodding. Annie tells her that the incident reinforced in her mind the idea that she was stupid and worthless. She smiles at Emma, willing her daughter to believe in herself. “It’ll get easier. I promise.”

Sue Ellen wastes no time invoking the clause. She and John Ross walk into the main house and the (figurative) hair pulling commences. Bobby is appalled. And then he gets angry. He warned JR what would happen if he tried something like this. Bobby pulls the cloud drive out of the safe and connects it to his laptop. He wants Sue Ellen to see the evidence that is going to send her son and JR to prison. The evidence that is being deleted as they speak. Bobby tries to stop it, but within seconds, all of the data is gone. Bobby accuses John Ross, but he didn’t do anything. Bobby did. When he opened JR’s email and “clicked on the video of that damn dog.”

“What’d you expect, Uncle Bobby? You keep a junkyard dog like JR tied up long enough, he’s only gonna get meaner.”

And that’s when Tony Almeida and his henchmen burst through the front door. He just couldn’t get extradited back to Venezuela without saying goodbye first. Where he comes from, “when a man makes a deal, he honors it.” He only wants what he was promised. Christopher has one hour to deliver the methane patent and prototype or Pambecca and the babies die. Tony is puzzled that John Ross is the one leaping to Pam’s defense. He sees the furtive glances and is all like, one hour or somebody – I’m not sure who, but somebody – is getting shot.

Court resumes and Annie takes the stand again. She talks about the years that she was manipulated and controlled. “Made afraid to do anything on my own.” She found the courage to break free, but not before losing her daughter. She speaks through tears of the following years, of mourning that loss, only to learn that Emma was alive. That she had been taken, “and there was nothing I could do about it. I felt powerless. I broke … and I hurt someone.” She looks directly at Emma. Hers is the only pain Annie regrets causing. She apologizes again. She’s sorry. So sorry. She begs Emma for a second chance. Zombie Grandpa looks like he’s sucking on a zombie lemon. It does not go unnoticed by the judge. Grandpa has his opportunity to speak, and then the judge hands the case back to the jury. Emma does not find her courage and ask at the last moment to speak. In the end, it doesn’t matter. The jury gives Annie probation. Angela is outraged. Outraged, I tell you! She demands a mistrial! The judge tells her to sit her aspirations down. And then he puts his daddy pants on and delivers a smackdown from the bench. “We’ve all sat here patiently listening to you and your son disparage his ex-wife, using this courtroom as a forum to paint her as a monster. Him as the ‘victim’. Without taking any responsibility for your part in this tragedy. Yes, you were shot, Zombie Grandpa, and that was wrong. Last week this jury found your ex-wife guilty on the facts … and that’s the law. But you took away her daughter. Made her believe she was dead.”

“If you’d done that to me sir, hell, I might’ve shot you too.”

Suck on THAT, Grandpa! “Mrs. Ewing suffered at your hand. It was well within the rights of this jury to make sure that she doesn’t suffer any more by sending her to prison. You’re not the victim here, Zombie Grandpa. Not by a long shot.”

After a brief fight fight struggle fight, Christopher and a henchie return to Southfork with the methane technology. Tony Almeida takes the case and decides Elena is more valuable to him alive. He’ll take her back to Venezuela as both insurance and tech support. He walks her out to the helicopter that’s just touching down in the paddock. Drew arrives home and realizes something … isn’t … quite … right. Inside, John Ross starts a fight with Christopher that is actually a cover for the shockingly well coordinated sneak attack that they seem to have telepathically cooked up right on the spot. John Ross and Bobby take care of the henchies while Christopher runs outside after Elena. He shields her with his body as Tony aims and a shot rings out … from Drew’s Army issue sniper rifle. They leave Tony’s body on the lawn to be swept up by the groundskeepers. Bobby checks that Christopher is okay and John Ross kisses Pambecca on the forehead. Maybe it was more than revenge for him after all.

The next day, John Ross introduces Sue Ellen as the newest board member of Ewing Energies. Bobby can’t believe she’s going through with it. Not after everything they’ve just been through as a family. Sue Ellen explains she’s simply doing what’s best for her and her son. “Like you said, we’re stronger together than we could ever be apart.” John Ross claps him on the shoulder. Shake it off! They’ve got work to do.